T
he Hon. Lance E. Walker, U.S. District Judge for the District of Maine, will receive the 2019 L. Kinvin Wroth Award during the University of Maine School of Law’s commencement ceremony on May 25.
The award, named after former Dean L. Kinvin Wroth, honors a Maine Law graduate who has achieved distinction in his or her career by contributing as a leader – locally, nationally or globally – and who has helped advance his or her alma mater.
On October 11, 2018, Judge Walker was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate, becoming the Court’s 19th federal district judge to have ever served in the District of Maine. Before his service on the federal bench, he was a judge on both the Maine Superior Court in Portland and on the Maine District Court. He was also a partner at a large Portland law firm for a dozen years where he was an experienced trial and appellate attorney specializing in complex litigation and insurance law.
“Judge Walker represents so well the value of lawyers and the value of Maine Law to this state,” said Danielle Conway, dean and professor of Maine Law. “His judicial service at the state level and his service on the federal bench exemplify the importance of home grown talent in furtherance of the rule of law in Maine,” continued Conway. “He has already inspired members of the Class of 2019 to seek and obtain federal and state clerkship opportunities to launch their legal careers right here in Maine, and for that I am so very grateful.”
Judge Walker has tried cases across the state and in federal court. He has argued appeals before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court and the First Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston and has been selected for recognition in respected peer-reviewed legal publications. As a judge, he has spoken with recovering addicts and caregivers on the issue of opioid addiction and its intersection with the criminal justice system. He received a B.A. in philosophy from the University of Maine, and graduated with honors from the University of Maine School of Law in 2000.
The graduation ceremony will be held at 10:00 am on Saturday, May 25, at Merrill Auditorium in Portland. Maine Law will award seventy-six J.D. degrees and twelve LL.M. degrees. The keynote address will be presented by Joseph Cassidy, president of Southern Maine Community College. Family and friends are welcome to attend the ceremony, and tickets are not required.
